tidy towns notice nature award lorraine power/billy flynn flynn, furney environmental consultants

Tidy TownsNotice Nature Award

Lorraine Power/Billy Flynn

Flynn, Furney Environmental Consultants

Tidy Towns Competition

• Ireland’s longest running env project

• Specifically rewards groups & areas that relate their work & area to wider living environment

Tidy Towns Competition

• Represents a chance for environmental well-being to be assessed & celebrated

• Highly supported by local authorities and & other bodies

Notice Nature Campaign

• Ireland’s NN campaign aims to:

1. raise awareness of importance of biodiversity

2. encourage everyone to play their part

• Convention on Biological Diversity• EU goal - halt loss of biodiversity

by 2010

TT Notice Nature Award

• Biodiversity Award• Separate applic, in TT pack• Total prize fund €8,000 • 7 regional prizes of €1,000, overall prize

of €1,000• Get credit if you are doing it anyway!• It’s all connected - let’s help protect it!

What is Award for?

Reward communities making efforts to:

1. Ensure protection of nature

2. Create new areas for nature

3. Enhance what’s already there

4. Raise public awareness of nature

What is Biodiversity?

• The total number of different living things in a given area

• Won’t it always be here?

• What use is it anyway?

Some of the 'Services' provided by Biodiversity

• Clean Food• Clean Air• Clean Water• Medicines• Materials• Landscapes• Inspiration• Recreation…

What Projects Can You Enter?

1. Protection of biodiversity sensitive area (e.g. woodland/hedgerow)

2. Enhancement of biodiversity areas

3. Dev. of new area of biodiversity importance

4. Communicating importance of biodiversity issues

First, can you find out what’s there?

• Surveys often recommended

• Allows for ‘baseline’ data

• Alerts you to anything really good

(or bad!)

• Helps to plan work, set priorities

• Lets you understand the area better

• Essential for interpretation

Wildlife Begins with Plants

• Think wild and go native

• Colourful annuals often of little use

• Lots of resources out there

• Garden centres are now as good a place as any to ask.

Native Trees and Shrubs are Best

• Choose locally suitable species- what’s there already?

• Think long-term• Keep other areas in

mind• Avoid invasive aliens

Such as…

• Rhododendron• Cherry Laurel• Bamboo• Fuschia• Box privet

Grasslands and Wildflowers

• Many options out there• Choose only suitable for

area, • experiment if space • Can look messy at first• Results can be

spectacular

Be bird-brained

• Of around 200 birds studied over the last decade, 25 are on the so-called Red List.

• Less than half are ‘Green-listed’

There’s much we can do

• Protect habitat when you can. It’s key.

• Leave space in your places and plans

• Step in and lend a hand when you can

You can:

• Put up and maintain feeders

• Plan, place and take care of nesting boxes

• Keep track

Remember that:

• We are trying to keep a balance

• Rear and release schemes not always best

• Allowing native species to become established is better

Water

• Teems with life when healthy

• Can greatly add to the diversity of an area

• Broadens scope for types of species

Water

• Features can be created

• Survey important• Always seek as

much information as possible on this

Mammals

• Much fewer species of mammals than other groups

• Very vulnerable to many pressures

• Development is biggest threat

Room for Wildlife in a Busy Area?

Don’t forget the flying mammals..!

• All bat species in Ireland are protected

• All are potentially vulnerable

• Are very difficult to survey

• More popular than you might think!

Where do you go to get information?

Where to get help

• Your local conservation ranger (National Parks and Wildlife Service) www.npws.ie

• Your local authority Environmental Awareness Officer

• Your County Heritage Officer• Heritage Council - ‘Conserving & Enhancing

Wildlife in Towns & Villages’

Where to get help

• TT handbook - Wildlife & Natural Amenities

• Birdwatch Ireland www.birdwatchireland.ie

• Irish Wildlife Trust www.iwt.ie• An Taisce www.antaisce.org

Helpful Web Sites• www.noticenature.ie • www.greenwave.ie• www.irishwildflowers.ie - identify wild flowers

by month & colour• www.wildflowers.ie - useful site for creating &

maintaining wildflower meadows & gardens• www.biology.ie - great website on general

Irish wildlife & lots of interactive surveys

And then tell the world!

• Spread of information is very important

• Modesty doesn’t get you points

• Don’t be afraid to have high hopes for the environment.

Thank You

Lorraine Power/Billy Flynn

Flynn, Furney Environmental Consultants

lor.power@yahoo.ie